Fairfax resident Vivienne Harr, 9, is selling her Make A Stand Lemon-aid to help end child slavery. She's been selling her drinks for more than 300 days and is now looking to bottle the product. (IJ photo/Megan Hansen)
Megan Hansen

It's been more than 300 days since 9-year-old Vivienne Harr of Fairfax first started selling lemonade in an effort to help end child slavery. Having garnered $500,000 in donations, Vivienne is ready to take her business to the next level by bottling her precious product for the masses.

The proceeds from Vivienne's Make A Stand Lemon-aid and its online equivalent, www.makeastandlemonade.com, go to Free the Slaves; Not For Sale; the Nepal Youth Foundation; the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labor; and GEMS: Girls Educational and Mentoring Services.

Vivienne Harr, 8, of Fairfax waits for the next customer as Maia Moreno, 5, and her mom Alba Moreno, of San Rafael enjoy their an ice cold lemonades at Harr's lemonade stand at Kenneth "Doc" Edgar Park in Fairfax, Calif. on Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012. Harr is raising money - with the help of the lemonade stand - to combat human trafficking and slavery worldwide. (Special to the IJ/Sherry LaVars)
Sherry LaVars

Vivienne's father, Eric Harr, said each of the five organizations were carefully vetted and selected for their work in fighting child slavery. Each cup, soon to be bottle, of homemade lemonade funds the effort to fight human trafficking and modern-day slavery around the world.

"We want to make sure people know when they drink our lemonade, they're making a difference," Eric Harr said.

The family's success in the lemonade business has led them to pursue the goal of having a bottled product ready for sale this spring. On Thursday night, the Harrs made a presentation to the Bay Angels — a Sausalito-based investment group that provides funding to early-stage companies.

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Clad in a light blue dress, Vivienne excitedly bounced around the room shaking hands with and hugging potential investors. She poured glasses of her special concoction for people to taste.

The third-grader at Cascade Canyon School said she is dedicated to her business and wants to keep managing it even when she's a grown-up, continuing to pick out logos and designing bottle shapes.

Her all-organic, fair trade lemonade sweetened with agave nectar, and sometimes enhanced with raspberries or mint, used to cost $2 to purchase. Now, she simply asks people to "give what's in your heart."

A set price and release date for the bottled product has yet to be determined, but Eric Harr said their corporate clients already include Google, Twitter, Facebook, Dropbox and Evernote. He said grocery stores such as Big John's Market, Good Earth, Mollie Stone's, Molsberry Market, Jackson Hole Grocery and seven restaurants in Jackson Hole have all agreed to carry the fruity drink.

"People are buying a teaching moment. It's not just lemonade," Eric Harr said.

Vivienne Harr, 8, of Fairfax gives local Fred Schultheis an ice cold lemonade at her lemonade stand at Kenneth "Doc" Edgar Park in Fairfax, Calif. on Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012. Harr is raising money - with the help of the lemonade stand - to combat human trafficking and slavery worldwide. (Special to the IJ/Sherry LaVars)
Sherry LaVars

The Harr family's journey began late last year when they were in Sonoma on a family trip. They saw "Slavery," a coffee table book about enslaved people by photojournalist Lisa Kristine, and were moved to action. A photo of two little enslaved Nepalese boys holding hands while carrying rocks on their backs tugged at their heart strings.

It was Vivienne's idea to raise an initial $100,000 for the Not For Sale organization by building a lemonade stand. At first, her parents didn't think there was any way they could raise enough money selling drinks to make an impact. The family mulled it over and decided to give it a try, with the help of the website www.makeastandlemonade.com.

"In the beginning, no one really knew what we were doing," Vivienne's mom, Alexandra, said. "Our friends thought we were crazy."

But Vivienne kept insisting they could end child slavery.

"We fully embraced her audacity of 'why can't we end child slavery in our lifetime?," Eric Harr said. "It's no more improbable than what's already happened."

Alexandra Harr, a stay-at-home mother, has helped squeeze more lemons than she can count. She said the family's journey has turned into a quest.

Her husband plans to leave his digital marketing job to help oversee the lemonade company's growth. Plans are also in the works for a children's book about Vivienne, her own line of apparel and a clothing line for her 4-year-old brother, Turner, who has stood by his sister's side as she's served up cup after cup of "sweet freedom."

"We didn't expect this," Eric Harr said. "Vivienne's lived a blessed life. It's really incumbent upon us as a Marin family to give back."

Vivienne, who loves playing with her dog and five frogs, said she wants to someday also support wildlife animal organizations. For now, she said she's happy and thrilled that her friends want to help.